To be and how not to be

Whenever there is talk of a new political party being formed, the first thought that runs in mind is what difference these guys are going to make which the others haven’t tried before. This could be due to the fact that, none of the newbies, for that matter even the existing ones, ever share a detailed plan on how they will accomplish whatever they are claiming. They could say that due to the fear of the rivals copying their approach, they may not want to share it. But even after coming to power, the secrecy (cluelessness maybe) remains. Even if they are open, the lingering doubt anyone willing to throw in their hat into the political arena is mainly due to the fact that, how will they identify 200 good candidates who are honest!!?

Most of the major parties always have a figurehead around whom they rally. So it is, for the newcomers, say for example, if, at all, Rajini decides to start a party, unless he opts for an unconventional way of selecting candidates, in all probability it’s going to be members of his fan club, without satisfying whom, there is no point in him even making the attempt, for it’s the very base he may be trusting his judgment. But the key thing we tend to miss out is that it’s not about him or anyone finding 200 good MLA’s but cleaning up the entire government machinery off corrupt officials. Time and again, it’s been proved that, people do roll up their sleeves and vote for change. But one group they can’t vote against are the officials of the government, whose jobs are more secure than the server where they store the scripts for Game of Thrones. Come whichever party to power, they simply have to share their cut to a new lordship, ensuring their supply remains steady. How do you scare someone or punish someone into submission, when they remain protected by invincible, centuries old laws.

The very issue that the wannabe political parties try to project as the core issue that they would clear, once they come to power, often becomes the bane of them. Every issue gets identified with some party or other and the moment they are identified as opposing a party, they get tagged with their opponents by enemy’s enemy is friend logic. They immediately lose all credibility and soon the purpose. Example would be captain’s party, which shot into fame pretty quick and whose demise, if not, even quicker. Every political party claims vote for them in the name of rooting out corruption, by which they mean their opposition and tag the party as the poster boy of corruption. But not a single group, to my knowledge, at least, has called out for rooting out corrupt officials by their action. For they know very well that, they are their mother lode for making money and cannot antagonize.

Who forms these government officials group? Where do they come from? The answer could be a bit closer home than expected. Every single family, who have some or other connection to government officials, tend to exploit their position. Be it getting recommendation, being benami, bending laws when caught, getting special treatment to as simple as bypassing queues, pretty sure all of us would fit in either or many of these categories. Rather than choosing a good servant to serve us for five years, why can’t be a good master which should be an even easier choice? Next time before we approach any one, known or unknown in government, let’s think for a minute on the chain reaction it sets. There would be delays, loss, pain and suffering, momentary frustration, depression and all. But considering the price we all pay, it’s really huge as against the smallest of sacrifices. End of the day, when the masters are at fault, one can’t expect the servants to be perfect.